This Easter Sunday, my family will attend church, and spend time together. One activities we look forward to is the annual family Easter egg hunt. Even though it really has nothing to do with the religious part of the holiday, it wouldn't seem right not to have it.

About two and a half years ago, I finally broke down and signed up for satellite television after about a decade living in rural Kansas without. Within a week, I was beginning to regret it, because my kids found "Toddlers in Tiaras", a ridiculous program in which girls who were barely old enough to walk "competed" in pageants to win crowns of which the mere size put winners in danger of stunting their growth. My kids couldn't get enough of it. I don't know what the fascination was--just a fad or passing fancy.

In December of 2011, the Travel Industry Association of Kansas challenged Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback to push for bike trails along every scenic and historic byway in the Sunflower State. The association's report listed five "product development opportunities upon which Kansas tourism professionals believe Kansas should focus," two of which highlighted bicycling and its potential impact on tourism.

After what the Golden Belt experienced in the past couple weeks with the blizzards, we all know just what can be dished out by Mother Nature. But, as winter fades to spring, the area faces a different kind of weather threat – thunder storms and tornadoes.

With our ineffectual Congress stalemated by partisan bickering over the pending sequester budget cuts and our divisive Legislature seemingly oblivious to the needs of rural Kansas, it is nice to see a glimmer of government operating as intended.

Like most things, if the people offering services like dental care are not treated with the respect their educations garner them, they are less likely to wish to serve. It costs a great deal of money to operate any professional practice, and when that is taken for granted, it costs the provider money in lost opportunity. Scheduling problems arise, and from time to time, everyone will forget something, but allowing it to become a chronic condition is irresponsible. People are all judged on our prior behavior, and on that of those who came before them.

"I love it when a plan comes together," the fictional television soldier of fortune Hannibal Smith would say when his "A-Team" had managed to survive yet another adventure. He saw the organization amid the chaos around him.

On Feb. 14 we'll celebrate Valentine's Day, a holiday devoted to love. If we ever decide to create a holiday devoted to science and reason, Feb. 12 might be the date to commemorate. On Feb. 12, 1809, British scientist Charles Darwin was born. Darwin went on to lay the foundation for the theory of biological evolution through natural selection, which changed the way we think about the natural world.

Recently, I was moving photos and pictures around on my walls. My favorites are two shadow boxes, one with a photo of my great grandmother and great grandfather, their daughters and a photo of their house on the farm. The farm is in Kackley, a tiny almost-ghost town in North Central Kansas. In the other box is a set of hand painted knobs my mother created 20 years ago, which adorned her kitchen cabinets for years until she remodeled. One of them has a miniature painting of the barn from the old farm.

An economic analysis released Friday by the law firm Polsinelli Shughart in partnership with the Kansas Energy Information Network analysis estimated that Kansas wind energy projects have created nearly 13,500 jobs in the state.

Articles by Section - Opinion

Listening to the national news, let alone the state news, has lately been depressing. But on a local level, there's plenty to feel good about. People in Barton County have heart, and last weekend a select few had a chance to show it in a big way. While many donned their best formal attire to attend the annual Chamber of Commerce banquet, these men donned field gear and welcomed some honest-to-goodness heros to our home.